On average from 2001 to 2005 (the last year for which com-plete data is available), about 40 percent of all fatalities during the Christmas and New Year holiday periods have occurred in crashes where at least one of the involved drivers was alcohol-impaired as compared to about 28 percent of all fatalities during the rest of December. This year, NHTSA estimates that about 430 fatalities could potentially occur in motor vehicle traffic crashes during the Christmas and New Year Holiday periods in crashes involving an impaired driver. In 2007, both Christmas and New Year’s fall on Tuesdays and hence both holiday periods are considered four-day holiday periods for reporting purposes.This Crash•Stats presents data that highlight the higher rate of involvement of impaired drivers in fatal crashes dur-ing the two holiday periods in December and compares the trend with the rate of involvement during the rest of the days in December. The number of such fatalities per day (fatalities averaged over the number of days in the holiday) during the two holiday periods is higher as compared to fatalities per day during the rest of December. (Author/publisher)
Samenvatting